A close call for the Leamington Flyers as the team left the Fort Lauderdale airport before five people were killed in a shooting spree.
The team left Windsor-Essex at about 4am today to catch a flight to Florida to make a team vacation cruise..
Jessi Piroski — the oldest daughter of Flyers head coach Tony Piroski — says the team made it out of the airport well before any shots were fired.
She says her heart was racing for a moment though as she called their travel agent to make sure everyone was okay.
"Yeah, it was quite a scare," says Piroski. "I assumed because they were leaving the house at 4am they'd already flown in and were gone, but until you get that confirmation it can be a bit scary."
As soon as Piroski and the rest of her immediate family heard about the shooting at the Fort Lauderdale airport, the worry began to set in.
"Panic a bit, but just wanted to reassure — I mean I did think they did leave pretty early to still be in the airport at that time — but just wanted to make sure," says Piroski. "You worry right away. They were leaving on the bus at 4am so I assumed they had flown out early, but it's always kind of that little bit of worry that you have until you actually know for sure that they are safe."
A former Alaska Army National Guard is suspected in the shooting.
Police arrested 26-year-old Esteban Santiago without incident after the shooting spree in the airport's bagge claims area.
Despite some earlier reports, Global Affairs Canada says Santiago was not on a flight that started in Canada or involved a Canadian carrier.